Windows 10 now controls 9 percent of OS market

Yahoo Finance ^ | 12/11/2015 | Jon Martindale

[SeekAndFind]

Microsoft took a gamble when it gave every Windows 7 and 8 license holder a free upgrade to Windows 10 and it looks to be paying off. Within less than six months of the release of the new operating system, Microsoft has secured a near 10 percent stake of the OS market with its new system, edging ever closer to that billion-install number Microsoft wants so badly.

These numbers come from a new NetMarketShare report which still has Windows 7 as the most popular operating system in the world, with a 56.11 percent share. However Windows 10 has cemented itself firmly in fourth place and is only a couple of points behind both Windows XP and Windows 8.1, both of which have approximately 11 percent of the global OS market.

What's most impressive about this is that this shows a continued strong rate of adoption of Windows 10. While it saw its biggest upswing shortly after release, it's still growing by around a percent of the market every month. If it continues at this rate, it won’t be more than a couple of years before W10 is the new dominant OS.

This would go well with Microsoft's plan to have the OS installed on over a billion devices within three years. It needs that heavy adoption too, as it gives it a much bigger audience to market its subscription-based application too.

The landscape of OS adoption is even more in Microsoft's favor if you look at only Steam gamer operating system choices. Windows 10 is currently the second-most popular OS on the platform, sitting just behind Windows 7, with a share just shy of 29 percent. That number has grown by 2.39 percent in the past month, cannibalizing both Windows 7 and 8.1 in doing so.

[Maelstorm]

The compatibility with some websites leaves much to be desired and it sometimes freezes. Its not bad overall just clearly needs a bit of work. The old ie is there for compatibility and if that doesn’t work I also use chrome.

[Missouri gal]

I HATE Windows 10. The default install demands COMPLETE access to ALL digital work, including hard drive, cloud and all messages. It the Russian communists had had this technology in the late 70’s, they would control the world today. Took me an hour to locate the opt-out, in tiny print at the bottom of the screen. And I don't like the way it runs, either.

[rightwingcrazy]

“No one is being ‘forced’ to do anything.”

Then that “56% share” will continue to use Windows 7, until MS comes up with something better, capische? What else would motivate them?

[spel_grammer_an_punct_polise]

Let’s assume that one upgrades to Win10 then hates it. Is it possible to uninstall Win10 and seamlessly go back to Win7?

[Jim from C-Town]

No it won’t. They have three times the users and most of them will not upgrade as 7 was the best windows they have had. At least not for the next decade.

[Jim from C-Town]

Thanks will look into it!

[GingisK]

Those stealth upgrades must really help.

[GingisK]

That’s more users than OSX and Linux combined

Lemmings do run in packs.

[OrangeHoof]

They spammed practically every Windows user with a free upgrade and less than 15% fell for it. They would have done better if they said “Click Here For Free Anti-Virus Firewall”.